


The Key to Your Heart

by F1_rabbit



Series: Keys to Desire [1]
Category: Motorcycling RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 22:36:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17150345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/F1_rabbit/pseuds/F1_rabbit
Summary: Everyone gets a key to their soulmate's heart, a unique and sacred thing that contains a bit of their soulmate's essence.Valentino tries to destroy his, and fate gets its own back...





	The Key to Your Heart

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DanisAngel26](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DanisAngel26/gifts).



> Merry Christmas sweetie! 🎄🎁❄⛄❤

Vale threw the key into the ocean, hurling it with all his might as he cursed its very existence.

He wanted nothing to do with soulmates.

*

The next morning, the key was sitting on his bedside table, still damp from the ocean, and there was a little scrap of seaweed wrapped round the gem at the top.

It was back.

Again.

***

Marc dreamt that he was drowning, swallowed up by the vast and unforgiving ocean, sinking down as the light faded.

He woke with a scream, gasping for air, his pyjamas soaked with sweat and clinging to his skin. Alex rushed over to comfort him, stroking his back as he calmed down.

“More bad dreams?”

Marc nodded, burying his face against his brother’s shoulder, clinging to him as he waited for the memories of the dream to fade away.

“It’s all going to be okay, I’m here.”

“Stay with me?”

Even though Alex’s bed was so close he could reach out and touch it without leaving his bed, it was still too far away, he needed to know that someone was there to keep the bad dreams away.

***

Vale covered his tattoo with a plaster, hiding it away so that he could forget about it.

The gap of blank skin, the place where the key to his heart should go, taunted him, reminding him that he was just part of a whole.

But he didn’t need anyone else, he was already a world champion many times over.

***

Marc was fifteen when the tattoo over his heart appeared, he almost fell in the shower when he saw it, shocked that it could happen without him realising.

The circle was perfect, a tyre with a pattern of what looked like red and black ants swirling inside it, and a gap in the middle where the key to his heart would go once he’d found his soulmate.

He held his hand over his heart, wondering where his soulmate was, and when he would meet them.

But first, he had to wait for their key to arrive.

***

Vale knew it was disrespectful to burn the key to his soulmate’s heart.

He had looked up the melting point of gold, and it was far hotter than anything he had access to, but that wasn’t going to stop him trying.

The blow torch roared into life, and Vale pulled down his goggles before turning the blow torch on to the innocent key that was held securely by the vice.

Flames danced in the black and red gems on the bow, as though the key was trembling in fear, and he held the flame over it until it spluttered out, the canister empty.

When the key had cooled, he wiped the thin film of soot off it, and it looked as good as new, taunting him with its refusal to be broken.

He threw the key into an old toolbox, hoping that out of sight really was out of mind.

***

Marc felt dizzy, and he reached out for the kitchen worktop to steady himself, but it was too late.

Everything went black.

*

He came to in a bathtub filled with ice, Alex and his parents all looking at him with worry in their eyes.

“You were burning up, and we didn’t know what else to do.” His mama felt his forehead with the back of her hand, warm compared to his icy skin.

“I’m okay, I feel fine now.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t race this weekend.”

Marc knew if it was his dad saying that, it was serious.

“I’m fine, I promise.” Marc rested his hand over his heart, an unspoken promise to his soulmate that he’d take care of himself.

***

Vale was working on a bike when Luca wandered in, his baby brother a mess of gangly limbs and awkwardness, and Vale was sure that he’d end up being taller than him.

“Do you want to help me?”

“I… I got my tattoo.” Luca rushed to pull his t-shirt off, blushing as Vale stared at him.

He covered the tattoo with his hand, and Vale looked away as he got dressed.

“When will I get their key?” Luca’s smile was so wide that it was almost bigger than his face, and Vale wished that he could be as enthusiastic about soulmates as Luca was.

“When the time is right.”

Luca looked so happy, and Vale gave him a hug, wishing that he could feel excited about meeting his soulmate, but it only filled him with dread.

***

From the day Marc had got his soulmate tattoo, he had waited patiently for the key to his soulmate’s heart to arrive.

It took three years for it to show up, a long slender silver key, the bow covered in many gemstones of vibrant colours arranged in an intricate mosaic pattern.

Even though he was thousands of miles from home, somehow the faeries, or whoever was in charge of this whole soulmate deal, had still found him.

He sat staring at the key, fascinated by the way the gems sparkled in the light, the pattern so familiar to him.

Marc was almost late for first practice because of the key, and if it hadn’t been for his dad checking up on him, he probably would have missed it.

*

Wandering through the paddock, he felt on top of the world, the rush of racing always left him high from the adrenaline.

He never thought that anything could beat that feeling.

And then he saw the pattern that had mesmerised him.

Valentino’s helmet.

It couldn’t be? Could it?

*

“You think Valentino Rossi is your soulmate?” Alex looked at him with wide eyes, and Marc knew that look. The ‘how hard did you hit your head’ look.

“You think I’m just a silly kid with a crush on my hero.”

Alex didn’t even have to say anything, he just pulled Marc into a hug, stroking his back until he was calm enough to hear what Alex had to say.

“You’re not even really friends, how can you be soulmates?”

“You’re right, I need to be his friend, find out what his tattoo is.”

Alex rolled his eyes, but he was too young to understand what it felt like to be drawn to someone, as though the universe itself was trying to push them together.

***

Marc was sure that him and Vale were friends, he’d even invited him to the ranch over the winter, and that had to mean that this feeling wasn’t one sided.

He spent the whole time following Vale around like a puppy, and that night the party kept going until the sun came up, ending with Vale sleeping topless on the sofa.

Marc knew it was his chance, and he tried to find the key to his soulmate’s heart, but it was gone.

He searched everywhere, even walking the length of the track to see if it could have been lost while he was racing, but it was nowhere to be seen.

Vale found him on the verge of tears, and he ducked down so that he look into his eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’ve lost the key to my soulmate’s heart.”

“Don’t worry, it’ll reappear.” Vale sounded so wise, and Marc found himself relaxing.

“What if I never find it?”

“Trust me, I’ve tried losing mine so many times that I’ve lost count, and it always comes back.” Vale rested his hand on Marc’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze as Marc looked up at him with big eyes.

“Why would you want to lose something that precious?”

“I’m not sure I want a soulmate.”

Marc frowned, he couldn’t understand that, his whole life he’d been waiting for the day that he met ‘the one’.

“Your taxi is here, you better go before you miss your flight.”

Vale gave him a hug, and Marc felt safe and loved in his arms, but clearly the universe had other plans for them.

“Thanks.”

“Anytime, babychamp.”

*

Marc fell asleep on the plane, and when he arrived at home, the key to his soulmate’s heart was sitting on his bedside table.

“Typical.”

This had to be the universe’s way of telling him that Vale wasn’t the one.

But it didn’t stop him wondering what could have been.

***

Sepang 2015 would go down in history as one of the worst races of Marc’s life.

And he didn’t know it yet, but things were going to get worse.

Race direction had summoned them both, and even after he’d seen the video of the incident, he couldn’t shake the feeling of betrayal.

Afterwards he tried to storm away, but Vale followed Marc as he snuck behind the garages, calling his name until he stopped.

“How could you do that?” Marc wasn’t angry at him, he was upset and disappointed, and that was worse somehow.

Anger was something Vale knew how to deal with, but this, he didn’t know how to put that right.

“It was an accident.”

“And the things you said in the press conference?”

Vale hung his head, he had no excuse for that, not one that he was willing to admit to himself.

“I can’t believe I thought you were my soulmate.”

Marc’s words were like a punch to the heart, and Vale found himself crying as Marc walked away, the black and red ants on Marc’s hoodie taunting him.

***

Vale had to clear most of the garage to find the old toolbox, the paint flaking due to neglect, and inside was the proof that he’d messed everything up.

The black and red gems were arranged like ants, same as Marc’s logo.

He’d thrown away his one chance at having a soulmate.

*

Luca found him hours later, curled up on the cold garage floor, his eyes pink from crying.

“I messed everything up.”

Luca’s silence said it all, he was far more tactful than him, clearly inherited from his dad.

“Apologise to him, don’t make this worse than it already is.”

To this day, Luca had no idea how Vale managed to misinterpret what he said.

He made things worse.

***

Marc had thought all the drama with moving to Andorra was bad, but that had been nothing compared to the hell that Vale and his fans were putting him through.

“Still think he’s your soulmate?” Alex lay next to him in bed, holding him through yet another bad dream, except this time it was happening while he was still awake.

“No, we’re not even friends.”

***

The drama settled, and people ended up talking about other things, like Dani and Jorge’s wedding, but it didn’t change the fact that Marc couldn’t stop thinking about Vale being his soulmate.

Marc wore the key to his soulmate’s heart around his neck, carrying it everywhere he went, in the hope that one day he would prove fate wrong and show that him and Vale were meant to be together.

He was drinking heavily, the sound of the music roaring through his body, and he went outside to get a breather, when he saw Vale leaning against the wall.

Vale coughed, rushing to stub out the cigarette that he’d been smoking, and Marc felt like nothing had ever changed between them.

“Congratulations on title number ten.”

“I beat you to it.” Marc smiled, he could never have imagined this when he first started racing.

“You did, and ever since you showed up in MotoGP, I knew you would.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, you’re something special, you know that?”

“I am.” Marc grinned, bouncing on the spot before stumbling over his own feet, and there was something in the way that Vale looked at him that made him feel like the one.

And then Vale frowned, and Marc knew that unhappy thoughts were clouding his mind.

“I’m sorry, for everything.”

“It’s all behind us now.”

“How can you forgive so easily?”

Marc felt the alcohol surging through his veins, making him brave, and he rushed in for a kiss, the taste of smoke overpowering but even that didn’t change the fact that he felt like his soul was on fire.

“Wh-” Vale didn’t even finish his thought, the glowing key shining out from under Marc’s shirt the focus of his attention, and Marc rushed to take the key off its chain, holding it out as Valentino tore his shirt open, sending buttons scattering across the alley.

The key turned to glowing energy the second it was near Vale’s heart, swirling and rearranging itself until it had filled in the missing part of his tattoo.

Marc ran his fingers over Vale’s heart, a soft gasp falling from Vale’s lips as he brushed his nipple.

“It’s you, it’s really you.” Marc felt tears welling up in his eyes, and he pulled Vale into a messy kiss, high on the feeling of true love.

*

Having to keep his hands off Vale for the entire journey back to the hotel was the strangest kind of torture, but the second the door to Vale’s room closed behind them, it was like someone had fired a starter’s gun.

Marc didn’t care where his clothes ended up, he needed to be naked, and fast, his lips seeking out Vale’s as they stumbled towards the bed, desperate for their bodies to be joined.

Vale fell backward against the bed, his boxers tangled around his ankles, but that didn’t stop Marc from straddling him with a grin on his face.

“I want to ride you.”

Vale shuffled up the bed, grabbing condoms as Marc got comfy, their hard cocks rubbing together as Marc teased him.

“I’m not going to last if you keep that up.”

Marc pouted, leaning in for a kiss as Vale fumbled the condom wrapper open, and Marc helped him roll it on, getting into position as Vale sat up against the headboard.

“Needy, aren’t you?” Vale stroked the side of his face, and Marc pounced, pinning his wrists above his head as he hovered over Vale’s hard cock. “Ready?”

“I’ve been waiting for this.” Marc sunk down onto him, so warm and snug around him that Vale had to take a breath so he didn’t come.

He’d barely bottomed out when Marc started riding him, snapping his hips as Vale struggled to keep up with Marc’s pace.

It was frantic and noisy, the years of longing bubbling over as he rode Vale, unable to wait as he rushed towards his climax.

Vale couldn’t believe the noises that fell from Marc’s pouty lips, his body so responsive to every touch, and he dragged Marc into a messy kiss, his free hand reaching down to tease at where their bodies were joined, and it wasn’t long before Marc was gasping in pleasure, his body shuddering as warm come spilled over his abs, and the feeling of Marc tight around him was all it took to have him coming hard.

“Fuck.” Marc slumped down over him, and Vale stroked his hair, wondering how he could still look perfect after such energetic love making.

“You don’t do anything by half, do you?”

“Never.” Marc laughed, forcing their bodies apart and making them both hiss at the loss, which only made Marc laugh more.

Vale tried to convince Marc to get a shower, but it was clear that he wasn’t going to be awake for much longer.

“I have something for you.” Vale reached into the bedside drawer, and he placed the key over Marc’s heart, both of them watching in awe as the red dust swirled and danced, completing Marc’s tattoo.

“How long have you known for?”

“Since… the incident.” Vale compressed his lips and Marc stroked his hair, glad for the return of his curls, even if they were greyer than before.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I thought you would hate me.”

“I never hated you, not even when you accused me of cheating, sleeping with Jorge, and made all your fans hate me.”

Vale buried his face against Marc’s shoulder, mumbling his apologies as Marc held him close, whispering sweet nothings.

“I don’t deserve you.”

“The universe thinks otherwise.”

“I’m glad someone believes in us.”

***

A few years passed, and the world seemed indifferent to the fact that they were soulmates.

They were enjoying a rare lie in, between racing and their junior rider academies, neither of them really got time off.

“I’ve been thinking.”

“Always dangerous.” Marc smiled, and Vale gave him a playful nudge.

“I think it’s time for me to hang up my leathers.”

“Retiring at forty-six.” Marc snorted in laughter, and Vale shrugged.

“I’m a creature of habit.”

“You are.”

“So, what are you going to do with yourself now?”

“We always talked about adopting.” Vale looked Marc in the eyes, and Marc could hear his heart pounding through his chest.

“Think you’re ready to be a dad?” Marc had waited for this moment for a long time, he’d always pictured his future self surrounded by children.

“I’m ready.”

**Author's Note:**

> *and obviously none of this actually happened, it is all a figment of my twisted imagination ;)


End file.
